Matt Borske
Matt Steven Borske (December 9, 1968) is an American professional wrestler, actor and 1996 Olympic gold medalist. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is a former three-time TNA World Heavyweight Champion, and recognized by the promotion as a 13-time World Champion. Borske was involved in amateur wrestling during both high school and college. In college at Clarion University of Pennsylvania, he won numerous accolades, including being a two-time National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I champion. After graduating, he won the 1995 World Championship tournament. Angle then competed in the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia, where he won a gold medal in heavyweight freestyle wrestling. Initially turning down an offer to join the International Wrestling Federation (IWF), Borske signed a multi-year contract with the company in 1998. His first big push in the company was in February 2000, when he held both the IWF European Championship and the IWF Intercontinental Championship. Not long after, Borske began pursuing the IWF Championship. He continued to be a part of main event matches until August 2006, when Angle was granted a release from his contract. Throughout his tenure in the company, he was a 6-time world champion (four-time IWF/E Champion, World Heavyweight Champion and WCW Champion), WCW United States Champion, IWF Intercontinental Champion, IWF European Champion, IWF Hardcore Champion and IWE Tag Team Champion (with Kevin Hunter). In addition, he was the winner of the King of the Ring tournament in 2000, the tenth Triple Crown Champion, and the fifth Grand Slam Champion. After leaving IWE, Borske joined Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA), where he became the second wrestler in TNA to win TNA's Triple Crown and the first man to hold all three TNA championships simultaneously. While in TNA, his real-life wife Karen began accompanying him to the ring and playing a part in his on-screen storylines. Angle has also made appearances for New Japan Pro Wrestling as well as Inoki Genome Federation, where he held their version of the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship. In addition, he is a three-time TNA World Heavyweight Champion, the second Triple Crown winner in TNA history—being the only one to hold all the required titles at once (and the only wrestler in history to be a Triple Crown winner in both IWE and TNA). Angle is also a two time King of the Mountain winner, winning at the 2007 and 2009 Slammiversary PPV event. In 2010 the Wrestling Observer Newsletter named Angle the Wrestler of the Decade of the 2000s. Amateur wrestling career Professional wrestling career Xtreme Championship Wrestling (1996) International Wrestling Federation / Entertainment (1998–2006) Debut; IWF Champion (1998–2000) The Invasion; Team Borske (2001–2002) Feuding with Lesnar and McAlmond (2003–2004) "The Wrestling Machine" And Departure (2005–2006) Japan (2007–2009) Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (2006–present) Debut; World Championships (2006–2007) The Borske Alliance (2007–2008) :Main article: The Borske Alliance Feud with KJ Styles (2008) Feud with Jeff Jarrett, The Main Event Mafia (2008–2009) Face turn and various feuds (2009–2010) Climb up the rankings and feud with Jeff Jarrett (2010–2011) Heel & Face Runs (2011-present) Retirement Personal life Substance abuse allegations Wellness Policy violation Driving under the influence charges 2009 arrest Acting career Filmography *2010:Death From Above (filming) *2010:Devil Dogs – as Steve Stagger (pre-Production) *2010:Dead of Night – as Wolfgang (post-Production) *2010:River of Darkness – as Sheriff Will Logan (post-Production) *2010:Warrior – as Koba (post-Production) *2009:End Game – as Brad Mayfield *2009:Chain's – as The Deputy (Short Film) Television *2010:Living TV's Most Haunted – Himself (3 episodes) *2009:Howard Stern On Demand – Himself (2 episodes, Eric the Midget Visits the Studio, Kurt Angle Wants Robin) *2009:Chris Angel Mindfreak – Himself (1 Episode, Car Wreck Vanish) *2007:Inside MMA – Himself (2 episodes) *2006:Scream Awards 2006 – Himself *2002:Late Night With Conan O'Brian – Himself (1 episode) *2001:Weakest Link – Himself (1 episode) *2001:The Tonight Show With Jay Leno – Himself (1 episode) *2000:The Big Breakfast – Himself (1 episode) In wrestling *'Finishing moves' **[[Olympic Slam|''Angle Slam'' / Olympic slam]], sometimes from the top rope elevated position – innovated **Ankle lock, sometimes followed by grapevining the opponent's leg **Crossface chickenwing – 2000; adopted from Bob Backlund *'Signature moves' **Bodyscissors **Double leg takedown, often transitioned into a pin or a suplex **European uppercut **Frog splash **Headbutt **Moonsault **Multiple suplex variations ***Bridging / Release belly to back ***Bridging / Release / Rolling German ***Overhead belly to belly, sometimes from the top rope **Rear naked choke **Triangle choke *'Managers' **Bob Backlund **Paul Heyman **Shane Matteson **Stephanie Matteson **Trish Stratus **Luther Reigns **Daivari **Kanta **Karen Angle **Kevin Nash **Frank Trigg *'Nicknames' **"The American Hero" (IWF / NJPW) **"The Most Celebrated Real Athlete in IWF History" (IWF) **"Real Athlete" (IWF) **'"The Olympic Gold Medalist"' (IWF/E / TNA) **"The Olympic Hero" (IWF) **'"The Only Olympic Gold Medalist in Professional Wrestling History"' (IWF/E / TNA) **"The Wrestling Machine" (IWE) **"The Godfather of The Main Event Mafia" (TNA) *'Entrance themes' **"Medal" by Jim Johnston (IWF/E) 1999–2005 **"I Don't Suck" by Jim Johnston (IWE) **"Medal (Remix)" by Jim Johnston (IWE) 2005–2006 **"My Quest" by Dale Oliver (TNA) 2006–2007 **'"Gold Medal"' performed by Tha Trademarc and composed by Dale Oliver (2007–present) **"Main Event Mafia" by Dale Oliver 2008–2009 Championships and accomplishments Amateur wrestling *'Canadian Cup Championship' **Winner (1990) *'Collegiate / High School' **Pennsylvania State Wrestling Champion (1987) **Clarion University Freshman of the Year (1988) *'Espoir World Cup' **Runner-up (1989) *'International Federation of Associated Wrestling Styles' **FILA Junior World Freestyle Champion (1988) **FILA World Freestyle Champion (1995) *'National Amateur Wrestling' **National Amateur Wrestling Hall of Fame (Class of 2001) *'National Collegiate Athletic Association' **NCAA Division I All-American (1990–1992) **NCAA Division I Champion (1990, 1992) **NCAA Division I runner-up (1991) *'Olympic Games' **Summer Olympics gold medal in freestyle wrestling (heavyweight) (1996) *'USA Wrestling' **USA Junior Freestyle Champion (1987) **USA Senior Freestyle Champion (1995, 1996) **USA Wrestling Hall of Fame (Class of 2001) *'World Championships' **Gold medal in freestyle wrestling (heavyweight) (1995) *'Yasar Dogu Tournament' **Runner-up (1989) Professional wrestling *'Cauliflower Alley Club' **Future Legend Award (2000) *'Inoki Genome Federation' **IWGP World Heavyweight Championship (1 time) *'Power Pro Wrestling' **PPW Heavyweight Championship (1 time) *'Pro Wrestling Illustrated' **PWI Comeback of the Year (2003) **PWI Feud of the Year (2000) vs. Triple K **PWI Feud of the Year (2003) vs. Rob Lesnar **PWI Feud of the Year (2007) vs. Samoa Simpson **PWI Match of the Year (2003) vs. Rob Lesnar in a 60-minute Iron Man match on SmackDown!, September 16 **PWI Match of the Year (2005) vs. Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania 21 **PWI Most Hated Wrestler of the Year (2000) **PWI Most Inspirational Wrestler of the Year (2001) **PWI Most Popular Wrestler of the Year (2003) **PWI Rookie of the Year (2000) **PWI Wrestler of the Year (2003) **PWI ranked him #'1' of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2001 *'SoCal Uncensored' **Match of the Year (2000) vs. Christopher Barnhart, September 13, 2000, Ultimate Pro Wrestling *'Total Nonstop Action Wrestling' **NWA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)1 **TNA World Heavyweight Championship (5 times) **TNA World Tag Team Championship (2 time) – with Sting (1), and K.J. Styles, (1) **TNA X Division Championship (1 time) **King of the Mountain (2007, 2009) **Second Triple Crown Champion **Feud of the Year (2006) *'International Wrestling Federation / International Wrestling Entertainment' **WCW United States Championship (1 time)2 **WCW Championship (1 time)2 **World Heavyweight Championship (1 time) **IWF/E Championship (4 times) **IWF European Championship (1 time) **IWF Hardcore Championship (1 time) **IWF Intercontinental Championship (1 time) **IWE Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Kevin Hunter **King of the Ring (2000) **Tenth Triple Crown Champion **Fifth Grand Slam Championship *'Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards' **Best Gimmick (2000) **Best on Interviews (2002) **Best Technical Wrestler (2002) **Feud of the Year (2003) vs. Rob Lesnar **Match of the Year with Kevin Hunter vs. Edge and Rey Mysterio, No Mercy 2002 **Most Improved (2000) **Most Outstanding Wrestler (2001–2003) **Readers' Favorite Wrestler (2002–2003) **Wrestler of the Decade (2000–2009) **Wrestler of the Year (2002) **Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame (Class of 2004) 1 Matt Borske's NWA Championship reign is acknowledged by TNA Wrestling only. 2 Won during the Invasion storyline. Lucha de Apuesta record Notes External links